


The Legends in the Dusk

by Jadter



Series: The Dusk Universe [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Cannibalism, F/F, F/M, More Relationships to be added, More tags to be added, Murder, Past Relationship(s), Superheroes, Supervillains, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-14
Updated: 2020-08-04
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:33:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22256488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jadter/pseuds/Jadter
Summary: Lily Williams is Ouroborous. The villainous cannibal. It’s not like she wants to be the villain, but when it comes to protecting your family, she does what she must.However, she’s being hunted, and as one of the last powered individuals of the old age, she is the remnant of the Golden Age of Heroes and Villains. An age that is turning to Dusk.Edda Williams is her daughter. Growing up never knowing her mother has caused her to wonder this secret person and why Amber won't say anything. It's not like she wants to disobey Amber but the secret won't leave her mind.Eventually, when a mysterious lady is in her house then leaves without saying anything, Edda is spurred into finding out her missing mother once and for all.
Relationships: Fem/fem
Series: The Dusk Universe [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1604539





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter 0 is proof of concept.

Lily wasn’t in the best situation but it wasn’t her fault. He shouldn’t have threatened Amber. It’s like he was asking to get eaten. Still, he tasted foul. Decayed cheese permeated her mouth. She felt sick.

Sirens blared and noises grew louder. She sighed. Not only were the police coming but she could hear electricity crackling. That meant the arrival of Shock. An murderous antihero that fought for justice. He's been making a name for himself and decided to set his sights on the murderous Ouroboros. She snickered. This would be easy to escape. Some wannabe vigilante wouldn't stop her. 

She stood up and using the power boost from eating the dude, she leapt up and grabbed onto the emergency walkway of the apartment complex. She pulled herself up and dashed to the roof. She backed up and then started sprinting. She jumped to the next roof and then the next. She had to move quickly because she felt herself slowing down. 

Her next jump failed and as she jumped she missed and slammed into an apartment. Her movements were slowed and she rolled. Thankfully, the power decrease hardened her skin so she didn’t have to worry about glass cuts. She slamed face first into the ground before pulling herself onto a couch and slowly relaxing. She had a couple minutes to take a breather 

“What a life in Emerald City.” Lily said to herself. A women screamed. Lily jumped up and spun around. She began to laugh.


	2. Back on the Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heading back to her apartment, Lily notices something odd.

“Shit.” Lily looked over at the screaming woman. Lily pushed herself up. “Look lady”, she spoke, “Shut your mouth and it’ll be alright.” The woman quieted down and continued to stare at her. Lily looked at her in confusion. “Why do you keep staring? Is it the blood or snakeskin?” 

Lily limped forward and the woman stepped backwards. Lily grinned and said “You’re going to help me.” The woman began to scream. Lily lunged.

[Timeskip]

Lily left the apartment. She strolled down the hallway. The lady’s clothes weren’t a perfect fit but it was better than walking around in her suit. She quickly left the building and stretched. It was quite lovely outside. 

The street was crowded as normal and the sidewalks were full of people. Her apartment was streets away. She sighed under her breath and started walking. She needed to get home.

As she walked home, she looked around. Mostly watching for villains but also out of habit. She didn’t trust anyone from her past to not jump out and attack. As she walked, her eyes flicked over people walking past her. She glanced at buildings and billboards. None of it was interesting. 

She finally reached her home. As she walked up the stairs, because of the landlords cheap nature and refusal to fix the elevator, she heard noises. She opened the door to her floor and saw a SWAT team around her apartment. They had broken in and were investigating. One of them turned and spotted her. “Unknown person in stairwell! Stay there and do not move!” She bolted down the stairwell. Behind her, SWAT members were rushing down as well. She ducked into another floor and sprinted down the hallway. She kept checking doors for an open one and when she found one she burst in. 

She ran through the apartment and leapt out the window. She plummeted 2 stories and crashed hard into the ground. She leaned over and bite her arm. She winced in pain before tearing it off and eating it. She stood up feeling her wounds heal then sprinted off. She had to get to Amber and Edda.


	3. Warnings and the Reaper

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lily rushes to Amber to warn them but the Reaper has other ideas.

Lily sprinted through the streets. Anything slower could mean death. The streets were crowded with business men leaving work. She pushed past and shoved them to the ground. They would move or be run over. She ducked into an alleyway and started gulping huge amounts of air.

The air tasted odd. Almost like ozone. Her eyes widened and she tossed herself forward into a combat roll then began to frantically look around. Shock, that bastard, was levitating down to her. The mute bastard always loved to showboat. Well she assumed he was mute, it’s not like he ever said anything.

Shock slowly approached her before raising his arms and firing lightning. Lily jumped out of the way and leaned down and bit her finger off. The flesh boosted her and she charged the idiot. Shock’s eyes widened as he attempted to shoot more electricity before Lily leapt on top of him. She began scratching and clawing and attempting to bite him and he fought back. 

He eventually sent electricity down his body which shocked Lily and sent her flying back. Shock stood up, looked down at his bleeding body and then turned and fled. Lily groaned before rolling over. She had a bit of energy left and she was getting close to Amber’s house. 

She limped along the alleyways until she came to a house. She leaned against the doorframe and knocked rapidly. Footsteps approached the door before it opened and Lily fell forwards. “Oh my god! Lily, what happened to you?” Lily attempted to speak before blacking our. All of the fighting and running had taken its toll. 

[POV Change: Amber]

Amber quickly caught Lily. She looked out the house before carrying her inside. She shifted Lily onto her back and closed the door. With the super strength and Lily not being heavy in general, it was like carrying a pillow. She tossed Lily onto a bed then walked out. She was suffering from eating exhaustion most likely. 

Amber walked down the hall to Edda’s room. She poked her head in. Still asleep. Her lovely daughter. She went back to Lily and sat down in a chair next to her. They needed to talk.

[Time Skip]

Lily was finally waking up. Amber nearly shouted before thinking then said “Why the hell are you here? Did you think I just forgot that you ran off leaving me with Edda!” Amber’s voice slowly grew louder. “13 YEARS! YOUR OWN DAUGHTER DOESN’T KNOW WHO YOU ARE!” Lily looked distressed. “Amber-I.” Amber cut her off. “No. No excuses, why are you here.” Lily sighed. “I’m being hunted. I needed to make sure you’re okay.” 

Amber tersely replied, “We’re fine. Any threat you bring is nothing I can’t handle.” Lily nodded. “I thought you would be angrier than this.” Lily admitted. Amber sighed, “I was at first but thirteen years and I’ve moved on. I didn’t have time to be angry, not when I had to raise Edda.” Lily nodded. “I should go. I’ve warned you about the threat and you don’t want me around.” Lily stood up and walked towards the door. Amber followed behind her. 

As Lily opened the bedroom door and began to walk to the front door, Amber heard a voice go “Mom, who’s the random lady?” Edda had woken up apparently. Lily’s breath hitched before she walked a bit faster then left the house. “Mom?” Amber sighed. “It’s not important sweetie.” Edda looked confused but shrugged. 

[POV Change: Lily]

Lily quickly left the house and the street. It was getting late and she needed to find shelter. As she turned the corner, she heard laughter. Cursing, she spun to look at the Reaper. He stood behind her grinning like he had just won the lottery. “Well well well, if it isn’t my favorite friend. How’ve you been? Clearly the missus is still angry.” He chuckled like it was the funniest thing in the world. 

Lily rolled her eyes. An obvious bait. One that she’s learned not to fall for. “Reaper. What do you want. Don’t you have some job to do for the Big Guy?” He smiled. “Me and him are having a little disagreement so I’m back to freelance. He wanted to withhold pay so I threatened to kill his family.” Reaper laughed. “The little kingpin likes to play with fire but hates getting burned.”

Lily grimaced. Of course he threatens the family, he likes the easy way of causing pain. Lily smiled at him, “So Reaper, what say you and I go get some food and see how’s it’s been for each other.” Reaper laughed and laughed before calming himself down. “Y’know Lily, that was a nice family you left in that house. Wonder why you didn’t eat them? Is that sentimentality?” Lily glared at the laughing fool. Reaper’s grin widened. “Oh so they’re important eh? Well how’s about I kill them in front of you?” 

That’s it. Lily charged him. Reaper merely prepared himself before laughing. “Bring it on bitch!” Lily body slammed him before she felt a sharp pain in her side. She looked and saw a big knife lodged into her rib cage. Reaper tossed her off him and stood up. “Not exactly what I wanted but good enough,” he muttered to himself. Lily pulled the knife out and threw it away. She pushed herself to her knees before leaping at him and digger her teeth into his leg. Reaper screamed and began to slam his other foot into her head. 

She eventually lost her grip and Reaper just kept stomping and stomping. He glared at her before limping away. She leaned over and bit her finger. She chewed and let her powers heal her. She really needed to start carrying more flesh around. She stood up and continued on. She was surprised that the fight was so short and she lost that badly. She was out of shape and getting older.

Oh well, she could worry about that in the morning.


	4. Breakfast, Mornings, and the Boss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the fight with Reaper, Lily crashes at someone's house. The next day, she plans to speak to an old acquaintance about the mysterious SWAT units raiding her house.

Lily groaned. She rolled over in the bed. It wasn’t all that great but the man had lived by himself so it was easy to dispose of him. She sat up in the bed and stretched. Her back popped and she groaned. She swung her legs to the side of the bed and got out. She was starving and hadn’t a chance to eat dinner. She opened the door and left the bedroom. She stepped into the small hallway. 

Walking down the hall, she came to the living room. Her nose crinkled at the smell. She had forgotten about the corpse. She stepped over the body and continued onto the kitchen. She looked through cabinets, looking for something edible, before settling on a bowl of cereal. She took the cereal and dropped onto the couch. The smell was slightly off-putting but the TV and the cereal helped distract her from it. As she ate, she watched the news. Nothing much about anything. Just a couple reports about some half-eaten people.

Who cares about some dead people? It’s not like they were important in the grand scheme of things. Edda, Amber, and herself were the only people that mattered. Not like Amber ever appreciated it but she didn’t care. Amber and Edda eventually would realize how much she protected them. With that in mind, Lily tossed the bowl into the sink and left the house. She stepped out onto the street. She was still wearing yesterday’s clothes. The man had nothing in her size.

She walked down the sidewalk and got into his car. She had nicked his keys while she was eating. She started the car and pulled out. She drove down the street. She needed to find out why she was being hunted again. Sadly, that meant that she had to go deal with the Boss again. Just great.

She drove through the streets. She pulled onto the interstate and got stuck in traffic. She nearly screamed. She leaned back and turned on the radio.

[Timeskip]

After finally getting out of the unique hell known as interstate traffic, she was finally near the Boss’ place. She parked the car and got out. She strolled into the building and walked past the secretary. The lady went to say something before recognizing her and going back to her work. Lily stormed into the elevator. She pushed the button for B-4. The elevator slowly descended. She leaned against the wall. As the standard elevator music played, she picked blood off her jacket. The elevator shuddered as it finished its descent and the doors opened.

She pushed herself off the wall and walked out of the elevator. Guards raised their weapons before lowing them at her glare. She’s remembered. The Boss probably warns the new hires to not attack. She smiled. The deterrence the lower lifeforms show is amazing. Prey must know its place and it looks like the Boss trains his dogs well. She chuckled as she walked to his office. He’ll have made it down here by now. His private elevator is much faster than the standard or maybe he was already down here working.

It’s not like it matters anyway. She walks up to the door and knocks. She stands there before the door opens. The Boss is standing on the other side. He looks at her and sighs. He steps to the side and says “Come in.” Lily smiles and walks in. He closes the door behind her and walks back to his desk. She glances around the office. It looks like it did last time. He sits down and she sits in a chair across from him. She politely smiles and waits for him to start. He runs his hand over his eyes and says, “Would you like a drink or do you want to get down to business?” She waves her hand. “No drink today. I just want to know something.”

He sighs again. Lily continues. “SWAT raided my apartment. I haven’t done much to get back on their radar especially with these new criminals and heroes. So do you know what is going on?” The Boss leaned back. He poured a glass of some foul-smelling alcohol. He downed it. Lily nearly rolled her eyes. This is taking far too long. He speaks. “So, there’s a rumor going around that the bigwigs want to take down the hard hitters of the old era. These new heroes and villains have grown up with these restrictions so they conform. People like you who can potentially end the world don’t conform to their laws.”

Lily grimaced. Of course, he pulled the world ending card. The big rumor on if she doesn’t eat flesh, she’ll destroy the world. “So, I scare people and they want to stop that. That’s not new.” Boss leaned forward. “You don’t know the full plan of what they’re going to do to you.” Lily looked concerned. “Do you know?” The Boss nodded. “They plan to lock you into this chair and force you to eat flesh. The prevailing theory is that eating flesh lengthens your life because of cell regeneration so they’re planning to do this for eternity. To keep the world alive.”

Lily recoiled shocked. The Boss nodded. “My advice? Run. Leave everything behind. Get out of the country.” Lily shook her head. “I can’t leave.” She left that her reason for not leaving was that she couldn’t leave Amber and Edda undefended. It’s better not to tip her hand on her refusal to leave. Especially to the Boss. He put his head in his hands. “I figured you would say that. Well, it was nice knowing you.” Lily stood up and left quickly.

She needed to get back to Amber. She was in potential danger. She ran to the elevator and slammed her hand onto the button. The elevator opened and she rushed in. She quickly hit the button for the ground floor. As the doors slowly shut, she bounced up and down on her feet. The elevator slowly ascended. Time stretched before it finally got back to the lobby. She rushed out of the building and got into the car. She quickly started it and started driving to Amber’s house. Her mind was racing miles per minute. She wove in and out of traffic. She was so focused that as she sped past a red light, a big truck hit the end of her car and sent her flying into a ditch.

The car rolled and slammed into the ground. Lily held on before slamming her head into the dashboard. Her head snapped back and it all went dark.


	5. A Death and Math class

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Math class is the cruelest thing imaginable. Edda will fight anyone who says otherwise.

Lily slowly came too. She attempted to move but yelped in pain. Her body was torn and twisted in somewhat unnatural ways. Only her regeneration was keeping her alive, and unless she ate flesh soon and kicked it into overdrive, she would die. Her head was bleeding. Most likely, a concussion. Her legs were twisted, and her right arm was shattered. She looked like a mess. She laughed deliriously and had a coughing fit that had her cough up blood. Her blood. She laid her head down. Her left arm fervently grabbed at her right. She yelled in pain before gritting her teeth. Her tongue? No, it wouldn’t be enough. She pulled her right hand to her mouth and began eating.

As she chewed, she felt her wounds healing. Her body twisted itself back to normal, and her injuries disappeared. Her legs bent right back around, and her right arm reconstructed itself. Still no right hand. She would need to find another person to help with that. She pulled herself out of the wreck, wincing as she dragged herself along the grass, and flopped out of the car. She was in a ditch. A crowd of people was standing at the roadside. She hoped that the idiot driver got killed. Stupid fool. She limped away from the wreck. They were too busy checking on the truck to attempt to get down the hill. She stumbled behind some trees and glanced out. Some members of the crowd had climbed down the ditch and were approaching the car. She stumbled further into the woods. She was still bleeding out. She couldn’t eat her flesh anymore. The stopgap measure just wasn’t enough. She heard a rustle behind her. She turned and saw Reaper. He grinned at her. She prepared to run before he raised his hands. “Calm down. I’m just checking on you.” She snorted. She didn’t believe it for a second. 

Reaper grinned. “Didn’t want you dying before I could kill you.” He blurred, then suddenly, Lily felt a stabbing pain in her stomach. He was behind her and had stabbed a makeshift sword into her gut. She snarled. Her good hand was grabbing at Reaper. He ducked out of the way, laughing sardonically, and pulled out of the sword. He sliced upwards and cut off her left arm at the joint. Lily collapsed to the ground, bleeding out quickly, and attempted to flee. She got nowhere. Reaper smiled and raised his sword high above Lily before bringing it down into her head. Lily’s movements stilled, and Reaper laughed. He pulled out the sword and left the forest. He blurred and disappeared in an instant. 

[POV Change: Edda]

Edda sat on her bed. Feet tapping, she shuffled through the book—wedding photos. Amber had gone to bed early, so she grabbed it. That mysterious lady had left Amber extremely upset. As she flipped through the book, she noticed that any photo that could have helped had been damaged as not to reveal the person’s face. She closed the book, deeming it a waste of time, and snuck back to her mother’s room. She slipped the book back into place then crept back to her room.

It was mostly bare with a desk, some photos of friends, and her bed. She slipped into bed and quickly fell asleep.

Morning came too quickly, and Edda rolled out of bed. She sleepily walked over to her closet and pulled out her usual attire. Hoodie and jeans to fight the day. She left the room. Opening the door, she yelled out a goodbye then left. She went to her car then started driving to school. 

Senior year was almost over; then she could spend more time looking for her missing parent. Arriving at school, she parked her car and got out. A banner hung over the school. 1 WEEK LEFT SENIORS! The girls on the cheerleading team probably made it. Edda shrugged.

She walked inside and looked around. It wasn’t overly crowded, but she still couldn’t see her friends. Ah well, she’d find them later. She walked through the halls, hands in her pockets, looking around. She didn’t see them. Ah well. She kept on walking. She passed by the library. A couple of first-year students were sitting around a table. She turned away and kept walking to her classroom.

She walked into math and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Math was her least favorite class. If not the stressful classes and annoying classmates, the teachers were almost universally bad. She dropped her stuff onto the floor and flopped into her chair. She put her head in her arms and went to sleep. Hopefully, when she wakes up, the class will be over.


	6. Revelations and Future Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An tragic accident has caused Amber, Edda's mother to reveal some information about her past.

School passed quickly and Edda rushed out of the building. Stretching, she began walking to her car. The sky was bright and clear. A perfect day. If only there wasn’t a blocked road ahead. As she slowly pulled forward and lowered her window, the cop signaled her to turn around. “What happened here?” The cop shrugged before saying “Car accident. At least 3 cars on the bridge were wrecked. Most are alive but injured. We’re looking for the other car that hit the truck head on and fell off the bridge. No hope on survivors but we can at least lay their bodies to rest.”

Edda blinked. Nodding, she rolled up her window and drove away. Scenic route it was then. As she drove away, she shivered before glancing towards the woods. A pale figure was standing there. Staring, the figure’s chest and shoulders were erratically moving. Laughing or crying, she couldn’t tell. She spotted a glint of steel before the figure moved back into the forest. 

She pulled her eyes away before she caused another accident. The rest of the way home was thankfully peaceful. Parking, she rummaged around for her house key then stepped inside. Her mom was pacing around the living room muttering to herself. The TV had been set to Channel 5 News. “Oh Lily, you idiot. Of course, someone would finally claim the bounty on you and of course you had to get innocents killed.” Edda fully stepped into the living room.

“Mom? What uh what are you talking about?” Her mom spun around and stared at her. “OH! Edda you startled me.” Edda glanced towards the TV before turning back. “Whose Lily and why is she responsible for that accident?” Edda’s mom sighed before answering, “Lily was a serial killer. Her powers involved cannibalism and regeneration from it. She was despised by the hero community and the syndicates alike. But she was unkillable when she was younger.” Edda tilted her head. “What’s stopping her from being unkillable now?” Edda’s mom snorted. “You mean besides that car crash? Old age and rusty skills. Lily was the arrogant sort. Always believing that she could handle it or that it was no problem. Always moving ahead and never really caring to what happened ”

Edda nodded before furrowing her brow. “You mentioned a bounty. Who claimed it?” Her mom sucked in her breath before answering, “A man who calls himself Reaper. Known for using a scythe and killing anyone he takes the contract of. Notorious assassin and serial killer as well. He kowtows the line to the more powerful Syndicate heads so he’s their personal attack dog at times and protected as well.”

“How do you know all this?” Her mom laughed rather mirthlessly. “I was a hero myself. Before the pregnancy. I like to think I was fairly popular. Mostly regional but I did participate in some national emergencies.” Edda placed her head in her hands and groaned. “17 years and I somehow never knew about that. I’m dumb.” Her mom laughed. “No no sweetie. You weren’t ever really meant to know about it until later. Moving on, since its’ your senior year have you finally made up your mind about your future career?”

Edda nodded. “I’m going to go to the Lightbringer Academy. I want to major in Hero coursing.” Her mom smiled. “That’s a good idea. It’ll be good to hone your powers once they start to kick in. Now you go entertain yourself. I’m going to start on dinner. How does burgers sound?” Edda smiled. “Sounds great mom.” Her mom turned and walked to the kitchen. Edda quickly dashed to her room and pumped her fist. Finally, she had a solid theory on her missing mother. That mysterious lady that was in her house and now her mom talking about a woman named Lily.

It was as good as she would get. Now she just needed proof. Her mother wouldn't say anything. No pictures or letters or anything that may have had a signature. Paternity tests were out of the questions. She had tried before, but they never told her. ‘You’re too young’ or ‘your mother does not want you to know’ or sometimes they just disappeared. Eventually it got too expensive, so Edda gave up on that route. Still, Lightbringer Academy was the starting point of Lightbringer himself and one of the most prestigious academies

If she could get an internship with one of the big shots, then she could use them as a way to investigate. If Lily did turn out to be her mother, then she needed to know the killer. Now she just had to get the grades and letters of recommendation ready. Simple. She rushed through dinner and forced herself to sleep. Thoughts kept racing through her mind. Was Lily her mother? Lily was a villain but she didn't really remember any cannibalistic villains. At least ones like her.

Day didn't come fast enough. The final couple of days and then she could start the next phase of her life. She quickly tossed on a shirt and jeans. Rushing, she grabbed a granola bar and ran out the door.


End file.
